Unlike the two Lichtenthaler articles, the article was “withdrawn at the request of the authors and editor.” Research Policyrefused to let Lichtenthaler withdraw or retract his two articles (after they came under investigation), although the Lichtenthaler retraction at JBV (also an Elsevier publication) was “retracted at the request of the Editor-in-Chief and Author.”

The notice from RP draws a distinction between retraction and withdrawal by pointing to its withdrawal policy. This implies that RP considered Ernst less culpable than Licthenthaler was.

Still, this puts Ernst at five articles retracted or withdrawn, second only to Lichtenthaler’s eight. This is not a race I’d want to win.